Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) Given Average Recommendation of "Buy" by Analysts

Shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Buy" by the seven analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy recommendation. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $146.14.

Several equities analysts have commented on LGND shares. Stifel Nicolaus assumed coverage on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Thursday, April 10th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $143.00 target price on the stock. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $142.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Monday, May 12th.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

LGND traded up $1.36 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $115.12. The company's stock had a trading volume of 114,526 shares, compared to its average volume of 117,674. The firm has a market cap of $2.22 billion, a PE ratio of -16.17 and a beta of 0.84. The company's 50-day moving average is $108.59 and its 200-day moving average is $110.03. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has a 52 week low of $87.28 and a 52 week high of $129.90.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 8th. The biotechnology company reported $1.33 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.23 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $45.33 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $37.84 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 7.83% and a negative net margin of 73.07%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $3.84 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Ligand Pharmaceuticals news, CEO Todd C. Davis acquired 9,510 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $105.20 per share, for a total transaction of $1,000,452.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 161,234 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,961,816.80. This represents a 6.27% increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Octavio Espinoza bought 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 9th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $104.06 per share, for a total transaction of $156,090.00. Following the acquisition, the chief financial officer directly owned 27,932 shares in the company, valued at $2,906,603.92. The trade was a 5.67% increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 2,000 shares of company stock worth $218,310. 7.00% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Strs Ohio bought a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the first quarter valued at about $789,000. Ellsworth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in the first quarter worth $765,000. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 176.2% in the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 36,922 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $3,882,000 after buying an additional 23,553 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 9.8% in the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 55,327 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $5,817,000 after purchasing an additional 4,926 shares during the period. Finally, Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. grew its position in Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 0.9% during the first quarter. Uniplan Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 68,792 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $7,233,000 after buying an additional 637 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 91.28% of the company's stock.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Company Profile

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, a biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development and licensing of biopharmaceutical assets worldwide. Its commercial programs include Kyprolis and Evomela, which are used to treat multiple myeloma; Rylaze, a recombinant erwinia asparaginase for the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia or lymphoblastic lymphoma in adult and pediatric patients; Filspari, a dual endothelin and angiotensin II receptor antagonist in development for rare kidney diseases and non-immunosuppressive treatment indicated for immunoglobulin A nephropathy; Teriparatide injection product for osteoporosis; Vaxneuvance for the prevention of invasive disease caused by streptococcus pneumoniae serotypes; and Pneumosil, a pneumococcal conjugate vaccine to help fight against pneumococcal pneumonia among children.